Trumpet-wise and otherwise, some days are better

[musicmonkey]

Sort of a personal reflection during what I consider to be one of the better days.

Why are some days better than others? I think that that is the secret of life. If somebody could analyze and figure out why a trumpet player can have full sound and great confidence one day and then have a weaker, quavering sound another day, that person would quite possibly be the greatest trumpet pedagogue ever.

There are so many factors that go into a good practice session, it is impossible to analyze them all. Of course, everybody should be fairly consistent from session to session, with gradual improvement over time; but some days things 'click' and some days they don't. While a large part of this is based on how good you actually are (the summation of previous playing), there are also other variables. If you are sick, for example, or dehydrated, you will play poorly.

Maybe the day after a particularly challenging gig will be a rest day...because you can't play well enough to do anything else (without killing yourself). So, how do we make as many days as possible as good as possible? I think the key is to always make sure you are well-nourished so that your body and mind can function well. Never play too hard on any given day, since that will surely make the next day a bad day. And always focus on playing the trumpet. If your mind is wandering, that can take a great deal from your playing.

Still, there will be some days that aren't so good. But as long as we feel we are always doing the best we possibly can on every given day: our minds are present, our bodies are functioning, and our chops are in shape, that is a good day.

Just some ramblings I thought I'd share with you guys. I'd also really appreciate any thoughts on this subject

mm

[ This Message was edited by: musicmonkey on 2003-02-14 15:02 ]

[pfrank]

This is a marvelous post...and points to why the trumpet is a great life teacher.
As a kid, I think that the biggest thing I learned from my trumpet teachers came from just sitting next to them: I could feel the power born from Stillness that they had. A stillness that came from putting in thousands of hours with a horn.
Trumpet teaches flexability. You're having a "bad" day? It's no big deal! Tomorrow might be a great day!
Why is that? Well, we might have an idea of this or that cause, but it's not always consistent. This teaches that there is more to life than what we can analize. It's About The Music, after all.
There is an old saying that goes something like this: What is the difference between the student and the master? The student is doing more and more about less and less. The master is doing less and less about more and more.

[DaveH]

Such is life in general........